Passenger carriage for ski or like elevated ways



May .1940.

PASSENGERCARRIAGE FOR SKI 0R LIKE LEVA Mus vi; 5

Filed March 23',- issf v INVENTOR' George rial/v- TORNEYS.

y 4, 1940. G. w. MORTON 2,200,965

PASSENGER CARRIAGE FOR SKI 0R LIKE ELEVATED WAYS Filed March 23, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

orion/ ATTORNEYS.

Patented May 14, 1940 t UNITED STATES PATENT OFFiCE PASSENGER CARRIAGE FOR SKI OR'LIKE ELEVATED WAYS George W. Morton, Bartlett, N. H.

Application March 23, 1939, Serial No. 263,758

4 Claims. (01. 104-140) My present invention is directed to improvefii y of y brush or r er m m rs which ments of my invention set forth in pending apkeep the way clear. plication Serial No. 229,107, filed September 9, The relation of the wheel system of Carriages 193s, and particularly to the development of A according to y invention, Which consist of a fore and aft safety factors by whi h my passenfront and rear axle and preferably rubber tired 5. ger carriages or cars are progressed m re steadily wheels makesv their performance vital to success. with reference to their draft aids and by which This is true in taking the turns at p and bottom their performance on both straight track and as well as in the straight sections which consticurved turn is made more uniform in spite of llllte major problem especially 011 the pvariant conditions on the elevated Way of collecy Where the Cars are 118118113 de tions of ice or snow, The cross linking of the front and rear axles In order to bring my invention up t th i D as indicated at El makes for smooth traction, actual operating service, I set forth herein cerbut irregularities of the W y Surface and V r atain improvements which h v b found tions in load make consistent towing a difficult wholly practical and demonstrate the basis by service to attain. 15.

which similar installations can be improved in One Of y present Concepts is at f a adtheir operation, vanced guide for the front cable arm and a rear Throughout the specification and drawings uide p e y disposed axially of the a e o like reference characters are employed to inditurning move o t e following '6 cate corresponding parts, and in the drawings: wheels. l

Fig, 1 is a general view of a ski passenger car- Referring to Fig. 3 it will be seen that I have riage and fragmentary suggestive indication of p de my front towing arm F With a fiSBt 01 a section of its immediately related cooperating leading bracket 1. These brackets I are in operainsta11ati0n tion steering assistants for the front wheels of Fig, 2 is a plan view of the running gear of a the cars being run on the way. These may be 25 car with its platform only indicated by broken p opo o to length f the e radius at lines to give the relative relations. turns, the spacing of cars along the cable in their Fig. 3 is a side elevation of an improved tow- Supporting relation to according to the engiing'arm according to my present invention. n ering problem of any installation, but in the 3 Fig, 4 is a face iew of the same form indicated it iS in practice only a five inch Fig. 5 is the rear arm in front elevation. overhang on a way running sixty cars on an up- Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the same. ward incline of several thousand feet usually in- Fig. '7 is a bottom View of the member, and clined at about 15 or 20% incline. Fig. 8 is a partial vertical longitudinal section- In such a Way the width of slot 0 of the way 5 al view through a car and a section of inclined W will be varied according to local problems elevated cable way. i and engineering design. In practice, in the way It will be understoodfthat the fragment of way above mentioned, it is found y u ssful indicated in the drawings at WW is part of a t a 1 inch Spacing. It is just enough to give system according to my invention. One of its a free run i may be edge faced at to get a characteristics is that its towing cable C is, Stnp the edge Way which 40 between its turns, supported by my carriages. may be of Pl l of any ava'flable Sort" even of these I provide a plurality and preferably that of a util1zat1on or the larger trees that occur enough to provide for the arrival of a car at a a proposed locatlon of h way for sawmg I station at intervals of a few irlinutes according afte-r clleaiinlg the Way or au-ttmg any other conto the terrain as engineered and the numbers of vsamemumber Where Vlstas are to. be provided more particularly for summer service. Such the pubhc servedan installation, if available to automobilists, at-

- a u siasm or s iin oun aineerin 1 ms made of the cable itself, which is usually a twisted steel possible t t who ordingrfl would not b 59 factor, and makes all ilg-egli in towing physically: able to ,standf even a relatively low a serious loss in power an e ciency. However, climb wi h new views 0 ranges added to the as ice and snow are importantly present in skiing attractions and justifying upkeep and operation season. cars encounter considerable irregularities even in the summer season,

on the way surface in spite of the degree of Considered in its simplest aspects my cong cept provides for a carriage or system of carriages such as I have indicated generally in Fig. 1. In this view I have indicated generally as A a wheeled unit later to be described in one of its preferred forms, but generally to be understood as a part of an inclined elevated cable system. I have suggested in fragment with the carriage A a pair of supporting ways W spaced slightly apart to leave an intermediate opening 0.

Referring to the carriage A as the basis of consideration, I may at the outsetcall attention to the fact that the passenger seat Sis askew of the cable or towing axis. It preferably is on the angle of seating incidence when considered from the axis of the boarding rail R, R by which the passenger swings aboard, having first stepped upon the running board inset U or which may extend the full length of the side of the carriage for summer service.

This rail (see Fig. 1) includes a main vertical stanchion portion R and its bracing cross rail portion B. As indicated in the suggestion of the immediate installation, such a stanchion rail may be backed or braced on like guard rails G which may be advisable for guarding passenger carelessness when in transit.

An actual embodiment may be several thousand feet in ascent and up any geographically favorable location, one such as might be indicated, as for example, by a straight line on a contoured Survey-Map, showing the location, but it will be understood that any actual view is impossible except on a miniature or model basis. Only a single car is indicated in the view, but in prac- 7 tice they are continuously spaced along the cable.

That the showing be better understood and appreciated, it may be indicated that an actual present project involved an inclined way some three thousand feet in ascent. It is pitched to a 15 or 20% incline. Including its return way, the so-called ways or walks W involve a length of some six thousand feet of elevated surface. This may be and preferably is in typical installations of plank and supported on posts, trestles, or other convenient and inexpensive understructure.

Taking such an installation as illustrative, it will be seen that my invention provides for the support of the cable C intermediate the bottom sheave and a top or driving sheave. sheave may be powered in any convenient and economicalmanner, as by a gosoline engine or electric motor, Where such power is available. (Not shown.)

A bottom sheave is preferably mounted on a car movable on tracks and counterweighted in the usual manner in cable ways of such types for taking up the slack due to varying loads.

Referring to Fig. 1, it will be seen that my carriage A can be in the form of simple wheeled trucks in which the passenger platform as at A (Fig. 8) is utilized as the longitudinal frame.

The axles D are pivoted as at E and are contowed by arms F which are hung on a pivoting fork H on the front or leading axle of each car- 1 riage. At its lower end a yoke Y is pivoted as at X.

The yokes Y encircle members Z secured to the cable at regular intervals, as, for example, every feet. This permits a free swiveling bearing Such drive for the yoke which forms'an offset pivoted foot for the bar F in passing around'the groove sheaves as suggested in Fig. 1.

The wheels T are preferably rubber tired and novel advantages, particularly for the ski-minded a public. It may be said to provide a novel method of upgrade assistanced progression of ski or like equipped passengers in which the procedure consists in mounting an upgrade moving conveyance while standing beside its way, including the preliminary stage of assuming a mounting stance parallel to the movement of the convey ance, in making pivotal manual engagement with the conveyance laterally thereof, in shifting the mounting stance laterally to the conveyance and in assuming aseated posture upon the convey- According to my present invention, the towing arm F is provided with a vertical guide 2 supported on a short forwardly projecting bracket I.

This guide is a short cylindrical bar of slightly.

less diameter than the centralslot or opening 0 in the way W.

It is set centrally under the yoke H which in the form shown is made with its end, brackets at 1 right angles to the cross bar portion Y. This gives more perfect pivoting of the towing arm F in its pivoting mounting on the front axle D of each car. 7

The arm F is preferably bent from flat stocks and has at its lower end a pair of overlapped fork forming members Y conveniently welded to the main or central arm F.

At the rear wheel axle of the carriage Iprovide a yoke. It preferably is formed from flat stock as a cross web [0 having upturned perforated ears II; Centrally of this rearyoke I mount a cylindrical spur I2 which may be'spot welded to the cross member l0 and works freely in the slot 0. By guiding the rear of the carriage in the axis of swing'of the rear wheel axle lateral movements are promptlychecked and the car thus kept under a steady control in spite of y 5 ice or other roughness on the way.

While I have laid opening emphasis on the skiing aspects of my invention, it is of course as I have heretofore suggested a boon to mountain lovers who for lack of time or strength cannot make the grade on foot. y I

As the ski passenger so stands he or she faces uphill or in the direction in which the carriages move in making the ascent. As the carriage comes abreast of the Waiting passenger, the stanchion R or its rail R is grasped while the left foot with or without its ski is slipped aboard the low plane of the running board U. As soon as weight can be transferred tothe foot so positioned the other foot and its ski can be lifted to a place beside it when the passenger steadied by the stanchion R and rail R swings diagonally into the seat S which is skewed or angled comfortably to receive him.

When it is desired to dismount at the top or v at some optional intermediate level, the passenger simply rises from the seat S and holding the stanchion R, and rail R assumes a standing posture until first his'right (or outside) foot takes the snow at the station side of the way. Then when weight is put upon it, the other foot is taken from the running board U and its ski launched in running contact with the snow at the side of the way. The dismounted passenger thus arrives in balanced standing posture and under the slight momentum of the carriage speed which is about four miles per hour.

In this way a miscellaneous passenger personnel without previous experience can handle itself without delay or mishap. As installations according to applicants invention increase on standardized bases of control, the public will have a chance increasingly to become educated even when using an installation at a wholly new site, so that the service to such importantly interested may become as it were institutionalized for the common good of all.

In my foregoing discussion, I have referred to my elevated structure as a way or ways. Preferably it is built as a pair of parallel plank walks W spaced slightly apart to leave an intervening slot 0 beneath which the endless towing cable C runs being supported at intervals along its length by the towing arms F of the carriages themselves.

Adjacent the way at the lower and upper levels are mounting or dismounting platforms. Also as above suggested, it is desirable to provide intermediate sidings or take 'oifs I leading from the main way or ways along which the carriages A are being towed according to the terrain of the location selected for the side of any particular installation.

As before suggested, installations according to my invention may be used in winter for skiing and in summer simply for giving passengers assistance to reach heights which would not otherwise be available to them or at least within the time at their disposal. In connection with the technique of the skiing practice this may be varied according to the dexterity of the passenger or according to the ideas of the management as to what is best for handling crowds expeditiously and safely. In some instances the running board U may be dispensed with and the passengers board the carby stepping directly on to the recessed floor of the platform A. Where running boards are omitted, attendants may hand the passengers skiis strapped together to him orher after being safely seated on the seats. When dismounting at the other end, the skiis may be passed to the attendant at that end so that the passenger has both hands free to grasp the rail R.-R'. This is of some assistance in the case of passengers who have not before mounted or dismounted from such moving carriages as go to make up the moving equipment of the installation.

In addition to my brush system K I may have an auxiliary system K placed at the rear of the carriage or some carriages may be equipped with front brushes and some with rear brushes to obtain variety in sweeping performance on the ways W. These brushes may be of fibre or metal or formed as scrapers according to the snow and ice conditions prevalent at any particular installation.

Such installations and modifications may and probably will develop various nomenclatures but their structure and mode of operation are to be understood as within the purview of my invention if within the scope of the appended claims.

What I therefore claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A ski passenger carriage for skiers service on upgrade approaches to an elevated take-off along a cabled inclined way, said way having a central slot and having an endless cable disposed to run below the plane of said slot, said carriage including a platform support, a wheel axle vertically pivoted beneath each end of said support, a depending towing arm dirigibly connected to the front axle of said carriage and disposable through the slot of said inclined cable way below the plane of the wheel axles and clamped to the cable, a forwardly projecting vertical guide on said depending towing arm and supported for free guidance in said slot in advance of the towing cable connection, said axles being connected across so that the wheels at front and rear turn at predetermined angles.

2. A ski passenger carriage for skiers service on upgrade approaches to an elevated take-off along a cabled inclined way, said way having a central slot and having an endless cable disposed to run below the plane of said slot, said carriage including a platform support, a wheel axle vertically pivoted beneath .each end of said support, a depending towing arm dirigibly connected to the front axle of said carriage and disposable through the slot of said inclined cable way below the plane of the wheel axles and clamped to the cable, a forwardly projecting vertical guide on said depending towing arm and supported for free guidance in said slot, a rear guide yoke mounted on the rear axle adjacent its center of turning, and a depending spur on said yoke supported for free guidance in the slot way, said axles being connected across so that the wheels at front and rear turn at predetermined angles.

3. A ski passenger carriage for skiers service on upgrade approaches to an elevated take-off along a cabled inclined way, said way having a central slot and having an endless cable disposed to run below the plane of said slot, said carriage including a platform support, a wheel axle pivoted beneath each end of said support, the front axle, at least, being pivoted about a vertical axis, a depending towing arm dirigibly connected to the front axle of said carriage and disposable through the slot of said inclined cable way below the plane of the wheel axles and clamped to the cable, and a cylindrical forwardly projecting vertical guide on said depending towing arm and supported for free guidance in said slot.

4. A ski passenger carriage for skiers service on upgrade approaches to an elevated take-off along a cabled inclined way, said way having a central slot and having an endless cable disposed to run below the plane of said slot, said carriage including a platform support, a wheel axle pivoted beneath each end of said support, the front axle, at least, being pivoted about a vertical axis, a depending towing arm dirigibly connected to the front axle of said carriage and disposable through the slot of said inclined cable way below the plane of the wheel axles and clamped to the cable, a cylindrical forwardly projecting vertical guide on said depending towing arm and supported for free guidance in said slot, a rear guide yoke mounted on the rear axle adjacent its center of turning, and a. depending spur on said yoke of cylindrical cross section and supported for free guidance in. the slot way.

GEORGE W. MORTON. 

